The Palin Talking Point Generator.

24102008

Behold, The Palin Talking Point Generator!

At the Alaska State Fair, and other craft shows around town, I’ve seen a little device that makes me smile and think, “Only in Alaska.” It’s the carved wooden likeness of a moose. The hollow moose body can be filled with jelly beans. The tail, which is moveable, is used as a lever, which, when operated, dispenses a jelly bean “moose nugget” in the palm of your hand. It’s beginning to remind me of the Palin campaign.

Their strategy has become obvious. Crank out a steady stream of half-truths, talking points, wedge issues, folksy filler words, justifications and shiny, sweet flat-out lies. Do this fast enough, and by the time anyone takes the time to review, research, analyze, debunk, refute, and thoughtfully respond, you’re already five piles of moose nuggets ahead of them.

Picture a five year old who gets a hold of the moose nugget generator, pumping that tail up and down as fast as his little hand can go, watching that big sticky pile accumulate in his hand. Yum.

It’s hard to know where to start, but let’s start with the interview she did with the Chicago Tribune today. And which nugget? Let’s try that nice shiny green one.

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin insisted in an interview with the Tribune on Thursday that she did not accept $150,000 worth of designer clothes from the Republican Party and “that is not who we are.” “That whole thing is just, bad!” she said. “Oh, if people only knew how frugal we are.”

Oh, dear. It sounds like she’s been very misunderstood indeed. People are so petty! But, wait a minute….hasn’t she…been..wearing those clothes? And….that’s the dollar amount that the RNC reported in their own disclosure forms. If you pay nothing, and get $150,000 in clothing, hair styling and makeup, that sounds pretty frugal to me. I just don’t get it. She’s not making any sense…WAIT! Another jelly bean! Look, it’s pink!

“I think Hillary Clinton was held to a different standard in her primary race,” Palin said. “Do you remember the conversations that took place about her, say superficial things that they don’t talk about with men, her wardrobe and her hairstyles, all of that? That’s a bit of that double standard.”

Hillary Clinton? Double standard? Wait a minute. There may be something to that, but I don’t think Hillary Clinton spent $150,000 of the DNC’s money to buy a new wardrobe. Her Senate wardrobe was just fine, just like…um….a Governor’s wardrobe should be, right? And what about John Edwards and that $400 hair cut? The Republicans had a field day over that one! Oh….look! A yellow one!

“I’m not going to complain about it, I’m not going to whine about it, I’m going to plow through that, because we are embarking on something greater than that, than allowing that double standard to adversely affect us,” she said.

We know American’s do NOT like complainers and whiners, that’s for sure. That’s pretty much the kiss of death for a politician. So it’s good she’s not complaining, except for saying it’s unfair, and sexist, and there’s a double standard, and people don’t understand the real her, and it’s painful because….heeeeeyy. Come to think of it, that actually kind of sounds like complaining and whining to me! That’s pretty hypocritic…..Oooo! Another one! It’s red!

But polls suggest that McCain is in trouble, partly because of Palin, who has been criticized as lacking the experience to become president. This week’s NBC/Wall Street Journal poll suggested more people now think that Palin is hurting McCain’s chances of becoming president than President George W. Bush, whose national approval ratings are in the 20s.

Palin disputed such conclusions.

“I think that those reporters asking those questions should come to some of our rallies and ask some of those in the crowd why it is they are enthused,” she said, adding that the crowds see her as representing “hardworking, everyday American families.”

But the Wall Street Journal/NBC poll isn’t actually made up of questions asked by reporters. It’s questions asked by pollsters, and it’s done in a pretty scientific sort of way. I don’t think it would really be appropriate to send pollsters to your rallies to ask them why they are there. You see, that wouldn’t really be impartial, or be a representative sample of the way the country is thinking, which is why we actually have polls. And the voters are made up of people from all over, not just “enthused” McCain-Palin rally-goers… Surely, you can’t possibly think that people will take this seriou….

OK, I need to stop now…my stomach hurts. I think I’ve overdone it on the moose nugget jelly beans. Anyone on the other ticket got some Alka-Seltzer?

274 responses

Ah, such a delightful summary to take to sleepy land. Thanks as always, AKM.

24102008

judi hussein that one Obama(18:58:23) :

I have got to have some of those moose candy dispensers. AKM where can I find them?

Hooray! I found them and put them in the Mudflats Amazon Store! Click the link on the sidebar, and go to the Alaska section of the store. 😀 AKM

24102008

judi hussein that one Obama(19:00:06) :

I wonder if that kind of stupidity is painful.

24102008

Lulu(19:04:01) :

Fifth!

24102008

Marty (VA) Hussein Waving Buh Bye(19:04:43) :

hmmph..🙂

24102008

Sue in Kansas(19:05:32) :

Has anyone heard about voter fraud in Ohio–College Reublicans on Greta saying that Obama campaign workers registered and voted illegally in Ohio? One young man shown apologizing that he didn’t know residency requirements.
I sure hope this is a hoax like the one in PA.

24102008

Deb(19:05:45) :

when I watched a clip of SOME of the Brian Williams interview with SP…I had to wonder……if she even has a CLUE about everything that has come out about her! at one point she said something about her life being an open book!!??….at dinner tonight, when I shared that with my dinner companion, he said “yeah, but with a LOT of pages missing!”

24102008

MizKay [stuck in] Red Carolina(19:06:04) :

One of the most annoying things about her appearances today is that she has yet another hairdo (bangs now – you know, bangs cover those forehead wrinkles). ;D
My 13-year-old daughter remarked that SP is just trying to look different from Tina Fey.

24102008

responsiblecitizen08(19:07:55) :

I have never liked jelly beans and now I know why.🙂 I would fill my moose with M&Ms.

24102008

Forty Watt Hussein(19:08:28) :

Me too-I want a moose that poops jelly beans.

24102008

Forty Watt Hussein(19:10:12) :

Amazon has them — new, used and pooped out.

I put it in the Mudflats Amazon Store! Click the link on the sidebar, and look in the Alaska section. AKM

24102008

Joy from Wisconsin aka Chisel Dustup Palin(19:10:16) :

I too noticed the new hairdo. The beehive thingy is gone. I can’t decide which way her hair looks better…or maybe I should say worse.

Someone up in Alaska ought to put those moose dispensers for sale on line. I’d love to have one of those.’

See note on previous comment! AKM

24102008

responsiblecitizen08(19:10:48) :

If the person was not allowed to vote, why didn’t the local election office not figure that out? I guess the College Republicans of Ohio are riding around solving voter crimes in their “Mystery Machine.”

24102008

Marty (VA) Hussein Waving Buh Bye(19:10:53) :

AKM just keeps rollin with one great article after another.

I just don’t know if i want any moose nuggets..!🙂

24102008

Forty Watt Hussein(19:11:58) :

Caution apparently required. Can be found more frugally elsewhere.

24102008

MizKay [stuck in] Red Carolina(19:12:16) :

Joy, well, she’s been w/out the beehive thing for awhile – now she has thicker bangs rather than just the few spiky ones she had at first. Today it looks different.

24102008

MizKay [stuck in] Red Carolina(19:13:11) :

I don’t want to watch Greta – what’s with the voting thing?

24102008

Marty (VA) Hussein Waving Buh Bye To McFailin(19:13:49) :

Anyone know what Barbie paid for her new glasses?? And that new hairdo, probably $5300 or so? McGrumpy can afford it.

24102008

Joy from Wisconsin aka Chisel Dustup Palin(19:14:30) :

MizKay, I guess I don’t pay as much attention to her on TV as I do to the blogs. I can’t stand looking at her or listening to her anyway. Whatever she (or her high class and over paid hair dresser) did to her hair it looks awful…sort of like she got caught out in the rain and then didn’t comb it for a day or two. Wow, I’m feeling really catty tonight.

24102008

whichferret(19:16:44) :

Carried over from the other thread

The St Louis Blues are about to lose 4 to 0. How does she expect to win over voters if she keeps screwing over their HOCKEY TEAMS????? Oh Great and Wondrous Hockey Mom my foot….more like Hockey Jinx

Oh and I want a Moose. Even if it is really similar to many things you find in Kansas and other “real” areas in the country….for some reason people seem to like things that poop out candy. I have had chickens, cows, reindeer and probably a couple of other critters given to me over the years. But I think the Moose would be the best…Hand made and a Palin ’08 reminder😛

24102008

Trini(19:16:51) :

Moose poops! I love them!

I got the impression with the Brian Williams interview that SWWNBN and Mcgritty had been naughty for passing notes to one another and were brought before the principle. It was a very strange interview. I thought that MC wanted SWWNBN to just shut up! But she couldn’t seem to control herself! Detention kids, now!

24102008

Susan in PA (Goalie Sanka Hussein)(19:16:58) :

One of my kids has a plastic polar bear that poops out brown jelly beans – now I’ll always think of Miz Palin when I see it!

24102008

notopalin(19:17:17) :

OMG! I want one of those Palin Talking Point Generators! And PS, Mudflats, you’re my hero.

America…both the pro and cons could all use a large dose to get us through till election day.

by the way has “hey sara sara” dropped the puck yet?

24102008

MizKay [stuck in] Red Carolina(19:17:42) :

I think the point I was trying to make is what Marty says so clearly – it’s more money they’re spending on the image. The new glasses, btw, are supposed to look more ‘intellectual.’

24102008

Marty (VA) Hussein Waving Buh Bye To McFailin(19:18:16) :

Anyone see Kathleen Parkers article on Wash Post? She basically said mcgrumpy picked failin because in some way, failin turned him on and that was more powerful as an immediate reaction than being smart and using long term common sense.

I’ve been saying from DAY 1.. that mcgrumpy picked failin cause she gave him a woody and no one was listening.. Well, at least a nationally known reporter agrees with me.. !🙂

24102008

Sue in Kansas(19:19:25) :

responsiblecitizen08 According to the report they did vote. Don’t know if it’s true – just heard it while changing channels and wondered if anyone else had heard anything.

24102008

Joy from Wisconsin aka Chisel Dustup Palin(19:20:13) :

Marty, whatever the reason McCain picked Palin we know it wasn’t for her brains, intellect, or speaking ability. If it was because of physical attraction then he sure paid a high price for that woody.

24102008

MizKay [stuck in] Red Carolina(19:21:34) :

Yep, Marty, I remember you saying that!

24102008

Lulu(19:22:51) :

Marty wrote; “I’ve been saying from DAY 1.. that mcgrumpy picked failin cause she gave him a woody and no one was listening.. Well, at least a nationally known reporter agrees with me.. !”

If Palin is Viagra to the GOP, then you’d think they’d be more upstanding.

24102008

Marty (VA) Hussein Waving Buh Bye To McFailin(19:23:42) :

Joy that’s always been my point.. He thought with the wrong brain and his irresponsiblity cost him the election and his self-respect.

She proved to be woefully inadequate for anything except telepromted reading and a few dozen memorized talking points.

Beyond that, she’s pretty much proven her worth is near zero. And if the second group finds that she violated ethics laws, she’ll be toasted.. hope it comes out next week.. that would just be so sweet!!!

24102008

akmuckraker(19:23:46) :

I started responding in the comments to everyone who wants a dispenser, but rather than be reeeally repetitious, I’ll post like this.

I found the moose candy dispenser, and it’s now available in the Mudflats Amazon store. Click the link on the sidebar, and then go to the Alaska section. You’ll find it there.

24102008

MizKay [stuck in] Red Carolina(19:23:46) :

LOL!

24102008

pamela(19:24:12) :

The highlight of my evening – catching up on Mudflats after 3 days out of town. Great post as always, AKM. Thanks!

And Responsible, I agree – M&Ms – can’t take Palin (or McCain) without a large dose of chocolate!!!

24102008

whichferret(19:25:15) :

Oh and don’t get me started on Fruit flies. Seriously I learned about using them for research when I was in like 4th or 5th grade….I am about 10 years younger than SWWNBN. Seriously who the f wrote that speech for her? How does the campaign let her get up there and spout that crap? Or did someone try and stop her and she just wouldn’t listen to them? I have an uncle like that….he gets an idea in his head and after that he just hears “blah blah blah…what I wanted to hear…blah blah blah” Maybe that is what happened in this case? I can only hope for the staffers sakes. Even though WE ALL know that it will end up being blamed on them in the end. Sad

24102008

whichferret(19:27:17) :

Marty

My husband has been saying the same thing actually…he just doesn’t do the blog thing

24102008

responsiblecitizen08(19:27:22) :

Sue in Kansas,
It troubles me how these college republicans would know about individual voters’ eligibility. I cannot bear to watch Fox news to see anything about this. I am on my second enlightened black ale, so maybe the sauce will get me through it. I will see what is online elsewhere.

24102008

MizKay [stuck in] Red Carolina(19:27:30) :

whichferret (19:25:15) :
Especially when her father was a science teacher…

24102008

responsiblecitizen08(19:28:58) :

Thank you, AKM. I have to have one. It will be a good story to tell my boys when they are older.

24102008

whichferret(19:29:16) :

McShame came right out and said she was his soul-mate. Generally it takes blood loss for men to say that. You will all notice that I said GENERALLY

24102008

CO Almost Native(19:29:27) :

Ok, Mudflatters-

The Palin hockey jinx is alive and well: not only did the Blues lose 4-0 to the Kings, they lost their goalie Manny Legace. He tripped on the carpet rolled out for the Palin brood, lasted only the first period, and went to the locker room. The Blues fans are mad! I’m an Avs fan, but nobody wishes that kind of luck on another team. (well, maybe the Red Wings)

Another successful evening for Queen Sarah:)

24102008

Marty (VA) Hussein Waving Buh Bye To McFailin(19:31:18) :

which, when you’re an idiot and failed biology 101, why would you know that fruit flies and many other obscure things are used by science to find out all sorts of things about our planet and ourselves.

If someone told her that a study to find out why honeybees were disappearing was essential, she’d probably say ‘who wants stupid stinging bees around anyway, i’d say that while thinking about such a very smart topic to which i’ll come up with an answer as soon as my brain can come up with a logical sounding …. oh yes.. honey bees are stupid and a waste and they sting people, and i’d have to say good riddance of such a nuisance’.

Anyone doubt she has even a slight clue what honeybees do?🙂

24102008

kizzy(19:31:35) :

Nice analogy, AKM. You should have a steady stream of moose nuggets to work with.

They have become the poster children for how-not-to-run-a-campaign. It is the least presidential presidential campaining I have seen in a long, long time.

24102008

responsiblecitizen08(19:31:45) :

pamela (19:24:12)
I have been indulging in too much chocolate and wine/beer for this election. I am personally a victim of the McCain/Palin for the pounds I have gained trying to cope with my fear of them leading this country.

24102008

eajphd Molten Contra Palin(19:38:35) :

Regarding the “Ohio Student Voter Fraud”.Greta Van Susteren and her guest Tiffany Wilson are the only ones reporting it. The Republicans have been pushing very hard against student voters and giving them false information regarding residency requirements in order to scare them out of registering and voting, e.g.

“The Election Registrar of Montgomery County, Virginia, home of Virginia Tech, distributed a press release warning students of dire consequences should they register to vote from their campus address. The release erroneously claimed that students’ financial aid would be put in jeopardy and that their parents might not be able to claim them as dependents on their taxes.”

That’s exactly what Nancy Pfotenhauer did when Chris Matthews was asking her why Palin didn’t understand the role of the Vice President–picked a tangent and argued back with it vehemently, while wearing a large fake smile. The GOP is the home of the Political Stepford Barbie.

24102008

whichferret(19:41:44) :

Yeah the Palin cursing of NHL is just amazing isn’t it. Is this some kind of protest because Alaska doesn’t have professional teams?

I’ve seen moose jelly bean dispensers around for quite a while here in Canada. But they have not been handcrafted. They were plastic and kind of looked like Bullwinkle, but on all fours. I absolutely want a handcrafted wooden one!

24102008

whichferret(19:48:03) :

And Amazon says that it could arrive between October 30 and November 4. How funny would it be for it to arrive on Election Day? Get to eat Moose Nuggets while watching the election results role in. Hopefully will not NEED the chocolate….hopefully it will be CELEBRATORY chocolate.

The men come to the rallies hoping to look up her skirt. Who is she trying to fool.

24102008

Bev(19:50:12) :

There’s a local pooper scooper company that hands out little keychains with a pup that poops this really disgusting oozy thing. . . ugh. My co-worker has one, and every time a customer talks about how wonderful, how great, how Christian, how American. . .blah blah blah. . . McCain and Palin are, my buddy relieves his frustration (can’t talk politics in retail) by squeezing his keychain. Poor little keychain has been doing a LOT of pooping these days!
Think I’ll get him a moose poop dispenser.

24102008

J-THE FRIGGING BROAD IS NUTZ(19:51:51) :

JUST WHEN I THINK SHE HAS EXHAUSTED HER LAST OUNCE OF STUPIDITY ANOTHER MOOSE “BEAN” DROPS OUT. MS. PLAIN(YES PLAIN)THE REASON THEY HELD HILARY TO A DIFFERENT STANDARD IS SIMPLE; SHE HAD A BRAIN. SHE WAS A LADY IN EVERY RESPECT- AND YOU ARE A SAD PIECE OF MOOSE DUNG. YOU KNOW, IT MATTERS NOT WHAT YOU PUT A WOMEN IN-SHE IS EITHER A LADY WITH A BRAIN, OR A DRESSED UP MORAN. I DO HOPE YOU READ THE CONSTITUTION BEFORE YOU EVEN ATTEMPT TO RUN FOR ANOTHER OFFICE…THE GOOD PEOPLE OF ALASKA OUGHT TO IMPEACH YOU FOR BEING IGNORANT. GOSH I NEED TO GO TO BED-WHEN I THINK OF THAT GARBAGE MOUTH TWIT I JUST GET ANGRY. YOU HAVE SOME GREAT PEOPLE IN YOUR FINE STATE-PALIN IS NOT ONE OF THEM.

24102008

copybook realist(19:52:16) :

Wow…if you haven’t seen this yet, it is worth a watch. Obama’s success = great teeth?

Duncan Hunter: I think John is wrong in that case. I think he has been tested. He was tested on Iraq. And here was a guy with great teeth, great speaking style, excellent politician and a superb debater, but when it came to the major issues…

Dear mister hunter…i would like to dunk you

24102008

testerm(19:52:53) :

I just donated to the opponent of Michelle Bachman. I listened (in error) earlier to Dennis Miller praising her on am radio and watched her on another rant of how all cultures aren’t equal or something to that effect. I couldn’t watch the whole thing before I had to rush and donate to this guy. I felt physically sick watching that bitch.

24102008

Lacy Lady(19:52:58) :

I don’t mean to change the subject—but—did anyone watch Fox News tonight? My son said that they had a news clip of fox reporters following Bill Ayers around with a microphone in his face, asking him if he wanted to apologize for the acts he committed back in the 60s or whenever. Apparently Ayers did not speak to them. Thought this was interesting. They are still trying to hang this guy around Obama’s neck. I am now waiting to see if this will be repeated later tonight. I can’t stand Hannity, but would like to know more about what these guys at Fox are up to. Wonder if the reporters can be acused of harrassment?

24102008

lis60(19:53:16) :

I have never seen such thick denial both on the part of Palin and McCain. With McCain it makes sense given he has a gambling addiction and his wife a former drug addict. Denial goes along with addictive behavior and also people who grew up in dysfunctional families – abusive, alcoholic, etc. With Palin I have no idea where her denial comes from. Is it just political BS? Or is she really in total denial and completely clueless? Both are really scary.

24102008

Deuce2 AL/Axe Diesel Hussein(19:53:22) :

Forty Watt Hussein (19:08:28) :

Me too-I want a moose that poops jelly beans
========================================
Laughed so hard I almost choked to death. Now, where did I
put that new pack of cigarettes?

24102008

responsiblecitizen08(19:55:54) :

What happened to Dennis Miller? I cannot believe how far he has fallen from his earlier beliefs. Maybe he has realized that the money is better on the far right side of politics.

24102008

whichferret(19:56:28) :

So on a really odd economic note

Just saw on CNN ticker that “Country singer Lorrie Morgan has filed for bankruptcy for primarily business related debts, according to a court filing.” How is that going to go over with the “base?” Their icons are failing/falling.

I’ve been out and about looking at different posts linked here today….
and I stumbled upon an article about body language and the hugs given to spouses…..
found this series of pictures taken right after the debate follow the series through until AFTER mccain and CINDY give a perfunctory hug.picture …they turn to obama and michelle ….look at Cindy’s FACE……she is NOT happy that michelle and barack are STILL hugging!
a picture says a thousand words!

If Palin is Viagra to the GOP, then you’d think they’d be more upstanding.

This is a real lulu!

24102008

Deb(20:02:56) :

by the way…the love between barack and michelle fill up that stage in the final picture 🙂 now THAT’S family values I can believe in!

24102008

Bec Hussein in Illinois(20:04:38) :

Hey Carol – there you are. I still can’t find the remote!

Advice to your son if he goes into theater — double-major and get that teaching degree, too!

We will have to have a Mudflats meet-up in Chicago one of these days. But I’ll chat with you from here on election night. Still not ready to do the outdoor-Grant Park celebration. I want to be by my TV and computer that night, for sure.

If you are really interested in knowing about Palins religious background/connections google C. Peter Wagner (Montt has connections to Wagner).

Once you start with Wagner (google Palin along with Wagner for even more fun) you’ll get into a lot more than you will be comfortable with re: her religious views.

24102008

Eyes Wide Open in Pittsburgh, PA(20:06:03) :

Am I the 72 comment?

24102008

Eyes Wide Open in Pittsburgh, PA(20:06:27) :

Yes!!!

24102008

katiebegood(20:07:44) :

The “moose turd” thingie reminded me of the first time I met my former inlaws. My MIL was the kind who always went all out on holidays. I was invited for Easter dinner. Sitting next to each place setting was a crotched duck filled with something. I picked it up and somehow squeezed it when a jelly bean pooped out of it’s behind and flew across the table and landed in my future FIL’s soup, splashing him. It was one of those “life’s most embarrassing moments”.

24102008

Carol(Chicago,IL)(20:08:58) :

Bec-
Very good advice! Thank you-he’s just starting his college studies-he’d actually be a good teacher.

I’ll be excited about the eventual meet-up.
Good luck on finding that remote. I lost a pair of scissors earlier this evening. Took me hours to find them on top of the hutch-just above eye level.

@responsiblecitizen08, I’m with you. I liked Dennis Miller back in the day (even on MNF, which everyone else hated), and I want to know who brainwashed him?

Somebody was asking on another thread about why McCain is campaigning in PA. I read that in addition to getting all the swing states (which isn’t likely), he needs to turn one blue state. His campaign has deemed PA the most likely. Good luck with that!

P.S. AKM, love your narrative on Palin and the pooping moose. How appropriate.

24102008

copybook realist(20:11:29) :

Thanks Carol.

Will do

24102008

prettybrown(20:11:34) :

Eyes Wide Open in Pittsburgh, PA (20:06:03) :

Am I the 72 comment?

__________________________________

LOL

24102008

NoCalGal(20:12:20) :

LOL the pooping dog key chain..

here is a site that sells similar things.. one is a pooping ELEPHANT!!

lol

“”http://ticklespop.com/poopinanimals.html

24102008

Spoon Archer Hussein Palin(20:12:45) :

I believe at some point she offered Hillary Clinton some advice about perceived whining:

24102008

copybook realist(20:13:08) :

Sorry Ira@

it is unbelievable isn’t it. I do not like these people.

Green eggs and ham?

24102008

responsiblecitizen08(20:13:11) :

This is completely off-topic,
How can John McCain be against Planned Parenthood when he claims to be a Goldwater conservative, that is when he is not labeling himself a foot soldier in the Reagan revolution? Mrs. Goldwater was the co-founder of Planned Parenthood. A daughter of the Goldwaters had an abortion and told them after the fact. They were nothing but loving and caring about the matter. They didn’t want other women to be in the same situation as their daughter. Regardless of how you feel about Barry Goldwater, he would not recognize the GOP that he helped energize in the 60s. I was just thinking about this today because of the endorsement of Barack Obama by the Goldwater family.

24102008

Deb(20:14:48) :

I’m out of here to finish packing…wish me luck in my sojourn to the VERY RED state of texas tomorrow…if I can FIND an interne connection…..I will definitely need some “talk down” nite fellow mudflatians!

24102008

asianHusseingrrl"that one"MN(20:14:53) :

@Deb, I am really glad that our side has two couples who are deeply in love (and not codependent, ahem). It shows when Barack smiles at Michelle and vice-versa. You can hear it in Joe’s voice, and you can see it in Jill’s eyes. After the stiff couples we’ve had in the past, it’s nice to see some genuine love.

24102008

Enjay in Eastern MT(20:14:54) :

Deb (20:01:14) :

I’ve been out and about looking at different posts linked here today….
and I stumbled upon an article about body language and the hugs given to spouses…..
found this series of pictures taken right after the debate follow the series through until AFTER mccain and CINDY give a perfunctory hug.picture …they turn to obama and michelle ….look at Cindy’s FACE……she is NOT happy that michelle and barack are STILL hugging!
a picture says a thousand words!
—————

She doesn’t look like a very happy person compared to the pics of them in 2000 Seems in the “early pics” – she reflected a lot of love —

****************************************************
Reposting Linda’s religion article post referred to here by
ira2 (20:10:10) – it was at the end of the previous thread.
An amazing article – very long – but lots of info. Much of it we’ve read before but find it here, all in one place, and there is mind-boggling new information. Digg the article up!

24102008

Bec Hussein in Illinois(20:30:19) :

Also on Bil Maher – this clip of McCain’s speech in PA. I somehow missed this clip of what a bumbling job he did. It is funny to watch the people behind him – trying to figure out — WTF!

this is even better than his slip with the “c” word this week. 11 more days. What other surprises are in store from him? For our entertainment.

****************************************************
Reposting Linda’s religion article post referred to here by
ira2 (20:10:10) – it was at the end of the previous thread.
An amazing article – very long – but lots of info. Much of it we’ve read before but find it here, all in one place, and there is mind-boggling new information. Digg the article up!

Yeah. I’ve decided that the best way to ward off a stomach ulcer explosion is to nuke a package of frozen strawberries, dump that hot and steaming over a tub of Breyer’s coffee ice cream, add a package of sliced almonds, and dig in. There’s no other way. I have to do it for my health. Don’t post any more links like that, please… I’ll be out of strawberries, ice cream AND almonds after this two-link treatment.

24102008

Eyes Wide Open in Pittsburgh, PA(20:31:53) :

(follow up to comments from the last thread earlier tonight)

Sorry for the delay in responding I was off line for a while. Had to feed my parrots, bond with family, etc.

Lulu, Sue in PA and rf11: Thank you.

West Va: All I know about Obama’s visit to Pgh. this coming Monday is that it is supposed to be at the Mellon Arena in the evening. Hillary announced this when she was in Pgh. over lunchtime today.

24102008

NoCalGal(20:34:24) :

DEB

where in Texas will you be??? I know someone in Austin- and there are a couple of Mudpuppies here from Texas… maybe you could find a kindred spirit..

and good luck for the good work!!

24102008

ira2(20:39:29) :

NoCalGal (20:34:24) :

DEB

where in Texas will you be??? I know someone in Austin- and there are a couple of Mudpuppies here from Texas… maybe you could find a kindred spirit..

This is a little poem that I picked up, from another thread, a
lot of posts ago. I feel that it will be fitting about midnight on
Nov. 4th.
Oh, somewhere in this favored land,
The sun is shining bright.
The band is playing somewhere,
And somewhere hearts are light.
And somewhere men are laughing,
And somewhere children shout.
But there is no joy in Palin Land,
Mighty McCain has just struck out.

24102008

Shikago aka Chief Hussein Shikago(20:47:30) :

Greetings muddies…finally home!

So AKM has another outstanding topic for our consumtion here and note the quote . . .

Palin ”That whole thing is just, bad!” she said. “Oh, if people only knew how frugal we are.”

Please, Sarah tell us how frugal are you???

“Let’s see”
$75,062.63 at Neiman Marcus on Sept. 10.
$41,850.72 at Saks Fifth Avenue in New York on Sept. 10.
$7,575.02 at Saks Fifth Avenue in St. Louis on Sept. 10.
$5,102.71 at Bloomingdale’s in New York on Sept. 10.
$789.72 at Barney’s New York on Sept. 10.
$4,396.94 at Macy’s in Minneapolis on Sept. 10.
$512.92 at Macy’s in Minneapolis on Sept. 10.
$4,537.85 at Macy’s in Minneapolis on Sept. 22.
$349.50 at Lord & Taylor in New York on Sept. 25.
$4,902.08 at Atelier New York on Sept. 10.
$98 to Pacifier in Minneapolis, on Sept. 10 and Sept. 25.
$98.50 to Steinlauf & Stoller, New York on Sept. 25.
$133 to the Gap in Minneapolis on Sept. 25.
$98 to Pacifier in Minneapolis on Sept. 25.

Sarah, your a lyin sack of s&#+

24102008

just a little old lady(20:49:20) :

On Channel 6 news Col. Ohio. I think there were about 12 Obama workers that thought they were eligible to vote because of 30 residency. They turned over their voter registratons. They said there are McCain workers in the same boat. They also arrested a 51 yo man for making death threat call to Jennifer Brunner.

24102008

copybook realist(20:49:55) :

OMG folks.

I am so sorry to have posted the article on the Palin Religion….I did not mean to upset, cause nightmares or create that “what the ……?” It was just that I was looking into it today. Scares the jeabezies(sp?) out of me every time…we are getting some ugly information which we probably wouldn’t have imagined going on before.

I have posted this before, but I will say it again…

SWMNBN has done us a huge favor in “attracting” of it to the MSM and to the “elite” and “anti” American blog..

Ignorance is not bliss!…It is better that we know about this craziness.

Please forgive me….. and sleep peacefully. Change is coming!

24102008

Eyes Wide Open in Pittsburgh, PA(20:50:50) :

The Hillary appearance in Pittsburgh today was pretty neat. I found out about it by chance. An invitation had been sent to a deceased client of mine. As executor of her estate, I received the information. I called, explained that my client had died and I asked if I could attend and bring two guests. They added us to the list. The crowd was mostly composed of elderly retirees and union members. Thousands came. It was billed as Hot Dogs with Hillary. Well organized. No charge to attend. EVERYONE was given boxed lunches with hotdog, apple, chips, bottled water and cookie. PA Gov. Ed Rendell was there with all the major union leaders and local political leaders. We got there early and were only two rows back from the stage. Therefore, when it ended, we got close enough to each say a few words to Hillary and shake her hand. I was surprised what a tiny person she is when I saw her in real life. The convention center was jammed to capacity.

24102008

Enjay in Eastern MT(20:52:04) :

Another Blog Comment from the Internet world of politics:

“”I have to say, since 2003 Obama has had all the mojo, every person who has gone up against him has gone into the Obama zone, the place where opponents lose their minds. First in Illinois when Ryan self destructed, and now 2008 first Hillary then McCain. “”

Anyone know where the Obama Zone is? Is that like the “tubes” ?

24102008

whichferret(20:57:03) :

Deuce

That would be really good if I wasn’t 1) trying really hard to not count my chickens and 2) really starting to go into my “but they are just “too special” to pick on any more mode. I know there is probably something wrong with me, but seriously this is starting to get kind of sick. If they do win, then there is a good chance that they used Rovian techniques. And if they lose well who knows what will happen with McCain and Cindy and the whole lot. But you can bet that the meltdown will not be pretty.

24102008

copybook realist(20:58:29) :

Digg this picture of Barack…love the jeans with a belt. I am thinking of showing it as an example to my students who insist on wearing their pants around their knees….how is that waddle walk sexy?

MIssed you on the last blog……..having hard time keeping up; here is what I am thinkin’ about tonight:
….. my spouse and I were talking about what SP would be doing after 11/05…and he suggested she might be the figurehead CEO for some company…I said, “like what?” He couldn’t say exactly, so I said, like
Martha for KMart? How about SP designer fashions for Sam’s Club or something? Any ideas?

24102008

vena45(21:00:24) :

I still don’t understand how this nut woman Palin became the gov of Alaska, she is too much of an airhead and clueless! Everything that comes out of her mouth is teeth clinching and embarassing.

24102008

Carol(Chicago,IL)(21:00:33) :

copybook realist-

I’ve actually been surprised that there hasn’t been more discussion on the religion topic. It’s a major part of what makes up her entire worldview.
Now, I don’t believe that she will make it into the White House but, the thing is, many of the people who are in the background of her religious views are well connected.

I’m not trying to be scarey either. I’ve just been keeping an eye on this for awhile and am interested that Palin’s name is now a part of it.

It’s another good reason to continue working on getting Obama into office and other good and sane politicians.

@copybook realist: no need to apologize. People can do what I did–not read the link! Problem solved.

24102008

asianHusseingrrl"that one"MN(21:02:56) :

also @ copybook realist–that’s a really sexy pic of Barack. I love the casual cool style.

24102008

copybook realist(21:04:23) :

@Enjay in Eastern MT (20:52:04)

The obama zone sounds just right. somewhere between Main Street and MLK Blvd and right next to Kennedy center…..see you there

24102008

copybook realist(21:05:24) :

@asianHusseingrrl”that one”MN (21:02:56)

He is so chill

24102008

asianHusseingrrl"that one"MN(21:07:09) :

@mwlfTHATONE40yrsAnchorag, I think FOX News or something of the sort is where she will land. She clearly is aiming to be on TV/in the movies, which is fine with me because then I won’t have to watch her.

24102008

JimK(21:07:32) :

He who is a fool should avoid showing it .Speak little and have lots
Of respect, and only then could you be vise president. Wise man go
un noticed , fools seek attention.

24102008

whichferret(21:07:33) :

@copybook realist:

I thank you for sharing actually. No matter how scary the truth is, people should know about it. And that is why they should know about it…because it is scary and they have no idea….I know I did not. Who knew that there were Mayans? Don’t they teach you in school that they were all killed off by the spanish or the aztecs or someone?

And also, another great reason to continue to support AKM & Alaska after Nov. 4, so they can remove sp from politics for us, or she will be back in 12. I believe she and the fundies are extremely dangerous to our country.

24102008

mwTHATONE40yrsAnchorage(21:09:49) :

copybook realist-
I’ve actually been surprised that there hasn’t been more discussion on the religion topic.
=====
maybe more discussion will come in the form of a list of 35 reasons not to vote for SWWNBN…. and the timing can only get better by the day……OR it has reached those who needed to hear about it…… as others have said, the gift that is SP keeps on giving.

24102008

Enjay in Eastern MT(21:10:00) :

Doesn’t look like a very active forum

24102008

Enjay in Eastern MT(21:10:25) :

compared to Mudflats that is

24102008

jody(21:15:44) :

the question should be put to Joe the Plumber (and Bob the Builder, etc…… all of those people who obvioulsy make over $250,000 yearly aand can afford it)
“hey Mrs. Plumber…..when was the last time Joe gave you a spare $150,000 for some new clothes? Oh…You need make up with that? Here’s another $22,000 for the next few weeks.” if you are Joe the Plumber, and you’ve made your donation to the mcShame campaign to beat Obama, only to see your money go to dressing up Palin….well…. you might be just a tad irritated. You betcha!!

24102008

asianHusseingrrl"that one"MN(21:16:14) :

@Enjay in Eastern MT, that’s because we’re awesome. And world-wide. And a bunch of insomniacs.

24102008

copybook realist(21:17:33) :

Enjay,

Friday night, we are either drinking rum and cokes at home or getting our fix of the night life! ho hum

slow night for the flats and for TV.

Still the repug drama is such a fix…I can’t seem to shake Sarah. lord I am feeling mavarichy…please don’t make a way!

nite all and sweet political dreaming.

by the way….we should all start recording the dreamscape…so that we can compile and compare our twilight zone moments.

@Carol(Chicago,IL) I have during the last week or so I have mentioned a get together with the Chicago mudflatters. Is this something you would be interested in? Also, we are going to be at Baracks (celebration – me hopes) rally on Nov. 4, you goin?

i forgot to add….can alaskans AFFORD to have her back? she’s gotten a little less “bush” down here running with the Big Dogs and a LOT more High Maintainence.
Good Luck on the budget….First re-doing the govenors home and now the wardrobe. can you see the new line items now for the Gov…..??.

24102008

Eyes Wide Open in Pittsburgh, PA(21:25:51) :

So one cold Alaskan day SWWNBN was driving her gas guzzling SUV across the arctic tundra while eating a big fish sandwich in one hand. Suddenly smoke starts coming out of the engine and the SUV breaks down. She gets out, walks across the ice and opens the hood to look inside. As she stands there finishing off the fish sandwich, the first dude rides up on his snow machine, sees her broken down and stops. He looks down into the engine and then at her and exclaims “It looks like you’ve blown a seal this time.” She looked startled, then reached up to wipe the corner of her mouth and explained, “Oh, no Dude, this is just tarter sauce.”

24102008

Shikago aka Chief Hussein Shikago(21:26:21) :

How would the world vote?

Here is a world map divided into Blue & Red countries… Have fun finding McCain/Palin🙂

“And also, another great reason to continue to support AKM & Alaska after Nov. 4, so they can remove sp from politics for us, or she will be back in 12. I believe she and the fundies are extremely dangerous to our country.”

No need for an apology. I agree that this kind of stuff needs to be out there and read and understood. As for me, I just got hit by it like I got hit by one of the race-related comments – it’s an out of the blue shocker, “OMG, this can’t be for real” kind of thing. Also.

The ice cream and strawberries and almonds helped with calming my nerves :o) And in the process of saving my stomach, I came across a half-hidden, half-full tub of butter pecan which will go very nicely with the raspberries from my backyard and a dash of Chambord next time I get shocked by far-out truth.

Bec and I have been discussing the Nov 4 rally (while you were away) and I don’t think I can tear myself away from TV and Mudflats live chat. I’m not completely set on that-because, I really want to meet-up with area mudflatters, as well.

Have you considered a meet-up spot? Keep me posted on this. How many of us do you think there are?

And, as to the fundies-amen-you are so right.

24102008

Lana, KY(21:33:23) :

Boy, AKM, you sure have a great way with words & images ~ and thank you, I needed that. Make mine black licorice jelly beans please. These are black lies.

I’m confident one minute and freaking out the next ~
I’ve aged 10 years in 2 months ~
My house is a mess, my work is backed up and
my cats hate me . . .

24102008

ira2(21:33:31) :

Eyes Wide Open in Pittsburgh, PA (21:25:51) :

So one cold Alaskan day SWWNBN was driving her gas guzzling SUV across the arctic tundra while eating a big fish sandwich in one hand. Suddenly smoke starts coming out of the engine and the SUV breaks down. She gets out, walks across the ice and opens the hood to look inside. […] … Seeing that she doesn’t know what she’s looking at because she didn’t ever read the manual, she mumbles, “Lord make a way. Lord make a way!”

And the ice floes opened.

24102008

Carol(Chicago,IL)(21:34:24) :

Shikago-

Cool map.

24102008

ira2(21:36:16) :

ira2 (21:33:31) : whoops, forgot to de-italicize the part after […]

24102008

Eyes Wide Open in Pittsburgh, PA(21:38:07) :

ira2….cute

24102008

Enjay in Eastern MT(21:39:18) :

I love reading both the pro & anti articles — read a story – maybe has a link to another interesting tid-bit somewhere else — get windows & doors opened all over the world Fascinating!!

Just read the “Obama thru the eyes of Britains US Embassador” – very good charactor assessment in two pages

What a great opportunity for you. Hillary is such a trooper, and I am amazed at how she is still giving it everything she has. It’s good to hear there was a great turn-out, but it’s not surprising….after all, she did win PA. Well, let’s hope she and Ed Rendell can help the Dems hold on to it.

24102008

Shikago aka Chief Hussein Shikago(21:40:06) :

Carol(Chicago,IL) Bec & I had mentioned a gathering prior to 11/4. I am all for going to some good central location for everyone. I am on the Northwest side. I think she said Wicker Park so she is closer to the loop. We’ll we can discuss it further in the near future…

24102008

Deuce2 AL/Axe Diesel Hussein(21:40:22) :

Eyes Wide Open in Pittsburgh, PA (21:25:51)
=======================================Now that’s funny. I don’t care who you are.

24102008

whichferret(21:42:08) :

Lana,

I know what you mean about the confident one minute and freaking out the next. And if I had cats….as it is I am not sure what my family thinks

I do know that I should be getting way more sleep than I am….am already supposed to be in bed….should not be on the TUBES

24102008

Eyes Wide Open in Pittsburgh, PA(21:44:03) :

Mired,

Poor Hillary was hoarse when she spoke because she has been straining her voice so much lately.

24102008

Shikago aka Chief Hussein Shikago(21:44:48) :

@ira2 I live in a very serious Breyers house, our deepfreeze has between 4-8 gallons at all times in it. Really bad, only 2 people live here.

24102008

Eyes Wide Open in Pittsburgh, PA(21:45:03) :

Deuce2,

thank you

24102008

Krystal(21:45:22) :

I had an epiphany tonight after listening to Keith about the FruitFlyGate. I realized why I daily check here and Huffington Post for new Palin escapades. She is like my daily dose of Garfield or such other comic strip. She is nothing if not reliable in giving me something every day. The stuff that comes out about her bemuses me, sometimes angers me, but often just makes me laugh and laugh. She is truly the gift that gives on giving. If I was less lazy, I might go through the past huff post/mudflats pages and in one document, systematically catalog each day’s gaffe, disaster or revelation. They are truly endless and I think putting them together would be awe inspiring. Though I appreciate my daily comic dose, I just wish this woman wasen’t so close to the White House.

Oh, another revelation today. I read the body language article and thought it kinda bizarre myself, but thought one thing struck me about the series of pictures. They looked pretty happy in 2000 so what happened in the past eight years. I wonder if Mccain blames Cindy for losing in 2000. Think about it, the robocalls were about two things: his “black” child and her drug abuse. Both are directly linked to Cindy Mccain; Heck, she didn’t even tell him about adopting the girl until she got off the plane with her. Who springs that on their husband? This isn’t to say that there weren’t problems before but I wonder if that would festered and festered. He is obviously ambitious and no doubt thought of that as his true moment. It isn’t exactly rational but makes a kind of weird sense. I don’t know if the relationship was ever truly healthy, but it does seem to have chilled quite a bit. That said, who knows. Can everyone ever tell what happens in a relationship?

24102008

Shikago aka Chief Hussein Shikago(21:47:59) :

@Deuce2 AL/Axe Diesel Hussein (21:40:22) :

@Eyes Wide Open in Pittsburgh, PA (21:25:51)
=======================================
Now that’s funny. I don’t care who you are.
———
I’ll second that

24102008

ira2(21:49:43) :

@ Shikago aka Chief Hussein Shikago (21:44:48) :

:o) It’s good for you. It’s the real stuff.

24102008

Carol(Chicago,IL)(21:50:03) :

and, I’m in Edgewater-so, close to all manner of public transportation.

24102008

Deuce2 AL/Axe Diesel Hussein(21:50:13) :

Eyes Wide Open: You are very welcome. Good Nite all. Back to this
addiction tomorrow.

24102008

Enjay in Eastern MT(21:51:25) :

I should be sleeping also – work another 4-5 hrs tomorrow — maybe get a bit more caught up …. HA HA HA

And the good news is we interviewed someone for the office clerk position — so maybe in a couple weeks I will have more help. Besides the election will be over and I may not spend all my “non-working waking hours” blogging

AKM — always a pleasure to be here – sharing a “hopeful future” with all the mudpuppies

I was believing SP may just get herself a reg. guest spot on FAUX Noise after the election – but I don’t think they could afford her wardrobe budget. So, after careful consideration & deliberation – I believe she will open her own Fundie Church called “Make a Way” lol

24102008

Deuce2 AL/Axe Diesel Hussein(21:51:43) :

Shikago, I thank you and so does Larry the Cable Guy.

24102008

Nisperos(21:53:15) :

Marty and Lulu —

The stuff about why McCain picked Palin is funny – and of course attraction or lust gotta be a contributing factor, but the real reaso,n me thinks, is not the CO Springs young Republican blogger either, the real reason is likely the vetting by The Council for National Policy. I posted about this on another forum and you can read about it here: http://neighbors.denverpost.com/viewtopic.php?f=46&t=10381303&p=515700#p515700 (the posts which follow might be of interest too).

Something I realized today was that whenever McCain is speaking there is always a crowd up on stage with him. They were showing a clip of him today giving a stump speech at a rally today and Cindy was behind him like always. I am not sure who else was up there with her, but she was yakking away with them in full view of the camera. It was seriously distracting. Not that I really wanted to hear McCain’s words, but probably other people did…..and she is behind him being INCREDIBLY rude! I mean I realize she has heard this speech a thousand times over, but how does she not get it that it is NOT FOR HER? OH WAIT!!!! Everything is for her isn’t it? Except for the brand new clothes and stylist for the paper doll.

24102008

Carol(Chicago,IL)(22:00:20) :

I was reading some article about Cindy and John and how they’ve essentially lived apart (she in AZ and he in DC) ever since she couldn’t make it in DC (during Reagan). Given what else we know about them, that separation can not have helped their relationship.
By all accounts, for most of the marriage she has been smitten by him,a real cheerleader-though, you sure can’t see it now.

24102008

Shikago aka Chief Hussein Shikago(22:01:55) :

Carol(Chicago,IL) Oh Edgewater that great too! So, we’ll just have to find out who all would be interested in meeting up, if it’s just 3 that’s fine with me as well. Make a note of my stealth e-mail addy 4waryears@gmail.com. I will write you back, using my real identity and addy. And pass it on if you see bec here before I do.

24102008

Carol(Chicago,IL)(22:03:43) :

umm-not so stealth-but, thanks. I’ll email you with mine.
I think Bec is still looking for that remote control:)

24102008

Bec Hussein in Illinois(22:04:08) :

Carol – Shikago – what are we still doing up? I’ve been reading that Palin’s Deceptions blog – still have a little obsession about the whole baby thing.

I’m going to be in Chicago next weekend, staying overnight. I’d have to think about it – Bears game at 1 PM – it is IN Chicago. But if I stayed and let my husband go home to watch the game (and I gave up watching it) – then maybe we could have a little Mudflats meet-up downtown around 11 or Noon at the Picasso/Daley Plaza, or at the Bean in Milenium Park. I’d catch the train home after.

Le me know if you are available. I know Shikago doesn’t care about the sports so much.

Any other Chicago folks that might want to meet up on Sunday, Nov. 2, downtown? We’ll have to post this a few times to catch everyone.

24102008

Bec Hussein in Illinois(22:06:13) :

Ha – gave up on the remote! I hope to find it in the morning. My husband had to crawl out of bed to turn off the TV, poor guy. I’m downstairs with the other TV. He can’t relate to late late night Mudflat hours at all.

We are planning to go see”W” tomorrow. Anyone else seen it yet?

24102008

AK Blogger(22:09:07) :

What’s her sudden claim to be a champion to those with special needs????? Check the record – she’s been all promises and no action in Alaska.

Been busy all day… so here I an in Oregon… watching streaming Keith on one screen and going through all the mudflat posts…. It’s 11:10… At this rate I’ll still be up at midnight!!

Sleep tight Mudflatters

24102008

Carol(Chicago,IL)(22:13:07) :

I have to tell you I never even showered today-ain’t vacation grand.

I can do a Sunday meet-up! And, mid-day works well for me. This will be fun.

Want to see “W”-have not yet.

24102008

DrChill(22:14:32) :

One of my favorite nuggets is her response to a protester at one of her rallies. “God bless you, my son is in Iraq defending your right to protest.”

McCain’s choice for VP seems to be content to just read the scripts, and deliver zingers and one-liners, much as a sports caster would.
A sportscaster is unlikely to actually know what the scores are of games she has not witnessed. Its not about having a thought and then expressing it. Its not about analysis, or research or theories or philosophy.
Its about saying something that superficially seems true or at least plausible, said in a confident manner.

Its about never saying” Sorry I was wrong” because, ” Sorry I was wrong”
can be broadcast on the news.

When I criticize folks who support GOP or conservative beliefs, and overwhelm them in an argument, they often use the last resort justification that- they (politicians) are all corrupt liars, and try to change the subject to Bill Clinton and cigars.

The implication is that – yes you’ve caught my corrupt bastard in a lie – or series of lies – but he’s MY corrupt bastard, and lets change the subject.

Its usually at this point in a political argument in which I realize that “reasons” are not what lead people -to- their belief, its what people use to defend their belief.
This explains why so many reasons defy logic, facts, and common sense.

Thus she seems to be an instrument of the GOP script writers appealing to the GOP base with faith-based political talking points.

@Bec, Carol
We’ll have to post this a few times to catch everyone.
– – – – –
Yes let’s do that for all the Chicago/SE Wisc./NW Ind. mudflatters.

I am available, at this point, at the time you mentioned. So as you help spread the word, we can hone in on time and place, I can always pick someone up if they need a ride. So let’s continue to work this up. What a riot that would be. Make a note of my not-so-stealth e-mail addy 4waryears@gmail.com. I will write you back, from my real identity and addy.

24102008

Scrimshaw aka Sack Panther Hussein(22:15:05) :

When the news broke about McCain picking Palin, the day after the DNC grand finale, I mused over what the heck he was thinking, and concluded he wasn’t! It must have been a computer pick! So I wrote this…

VP-U-PIKEM

At last John McCain has overcome his aversion to computers. His first warm-up on the PC was a stunning success.

Faced with a crucial deadline, John tried out the Free Download of VP-U-PIKEM, a recent adaptation of computer dating software. It was so easy. He simply input his own perceived short-comings, then the perceived strengths of his opponents, and in .012 seconds, the program described the VP candidate with key characteristics to be his counterpart. The ideal VP for John McCain must be:

On seeing this, John was understandably worried, but proceeded to upload his extended long list of candidates (every Republican or independent who had held public office for any length of time in this decade.) He had to wait 2.044 seconds for the answer: an incredible 8-point match!

~Unsigned.

Then I got online to find out why, really… and soon found myself here (thanks to Anne Kilkenny).

24102008

Shikago aka Chief Hussein Shikago(22:16:11) :

I would love to see “W” as well…

24102008

mamaorange(22:17:52) :

We will miss mudflats when this is all over! (Will still check in, but AK politics will have quite the same draw!)

24102008

Krystal(22:18:33) :

Post 1#

My posts are way to long, but I wanted to make one more point. There is a dirty little secret in this campaign that none of the talking heads are talking about. We are going to win. That’s right, I’m done with worry and self-defeating prophesies. We are going to obliterate the Republican Party in a sweep rarely seen before.

Its funny, but the Republicans know it and I have seen many out on shows like Bill Maher openly talk about it. Its only us Dems who are worrying, worrying, worrying. This sucker is done and everyone knows it, but noone can say it out loud.

On the most basic level, think about the past two elections. Both were extremely close, right. Neither Gore or Kerry had the map that Obama has carefully created and neither really had the political magnetism that he has. He is tied, close and leading in pretty much all demographics including white voters. Hispanics are drawn to him all and all, and the African American population will come out in numbers larger than previously seen. Student voters will come out in great number. It is the stupidest fallacy ever to think these kids who came out in large numbers to a primary won’t want to finish the job and elect him president. His demographics are better than Clinton’s, but hey, it could be close, right? Yeah right.

Then, just take a look at the polling. They talk about the Palin bump, but seriously, Mccain has led in the polls for a grand total of like three weeks in the whole election cycle. The bump was a combo of Palin (now a big hindrance and the normal convention boost). Lets also not mention the millions of new and cell phone voters not being actively polled but will overwhelmingly vote for that one. But things are going to completely shift now? Please.

And the electoral map….Obama can lose Ohio and Florida and it won’t make a damn difference. He has about 8 state combos to win and Mccain has to flip both Colorado and Pennsylvania. Do you really think that is going to happen in 10 days. Particularly after Todd. Nope.

Okay, here is another angle. Look at the polling margins even in the red states that have no chance of turning blue. In many of them, Bush in both elections lead in these places by double digits while Mccain is often just high single digits behind. Think of how that will translate in popular vote.

And then there is the ground game. If you have been following the traveling blog on five thirty eight, you, like me, are probably left with the same impression. Mccain’s ground game sucks and Obama’s is better than even that of Bush. He has 50 to 100 field offices in all major battleground states and volunteers, many of them local who are beyond enthused. He is in rural and urban areas and has been in many of the states since the primaries. He entrusted this thing in the hands of ordinary people and the dividends of this method will only be truely acknowledged when he wins in a landslide. But Mccain has them right where he wants them.

Son of B!T@H Just checked the local news before heading off to bed….so much for hurrying to bed….

“www.kansascity.com/679/story/856878.html”

“School officials took disciplinary action this week against three boys because of a racial slur written on in non-permanent marker on the window of a student’s car at Shawnee Mission East High School.” Of course it was a car with an Obama sticker on it. So you can probably guess what they wrote if you don’t want to check the link….it is a very short news story though.
This is of course in the suburbs of Kansas City and in one of the “Rich” schools. Thankfully it is not the one that my son goes to, but it is the same district*sigh* The really sad part is that more than likely this was rich kids who just thought that this would be a “kick/funny” and they weren’t really hurting anyone or anything, especially since it was a non-permanent marker.

Okay, so that is the short list. There is also Mccain’s schizophrenic campaign, the daily Palin cartoon, a plunging enconomy about to truely enter free fall, the money disparity, a candidate who seems like teflon with the smartest guys in the room around him but Mccain has a chance? In 10 days now. Uh no.

Listen, some people will argue history like Truman, but fail then to look at modern advances in polling and such. This is unlike any election of our time and their really isn’t any historical model.

Now, I understand why they aren’t screaming victory yet. They don’t want us to become “complacent” or look like braggerts. But seriously, with the avalibility of early poling, who really isn’t going to vote in this election besides Mccain supporters. Democrats will vote because we are paranoid and because it is a chance to make history, Independents and some closet Republicans will vote because they are scared shitless of Palin. Some people will vote against Obama, but they will never eclipse the rest of us from every religion, every walk of life and even, imagine this, every party at this point. Economy will eclipse race and we will see this in great numbers. You can only disfranchise people so much really. Its like the thump in the levy if you will and the flood is coming.

Okay, if you have gotten to this point, congrats. If you haven’t, I am so not offended. I’m not an expert of anything, but have tracked this thing pretty strenuously that past two months and that is my armchair analysis. Anyhow, the main point is, that its done and I’m done. They all know it and we all know it deep in our hearts of hearts. Introducing, President Barack Obama.

24102008

Denise ThatOneFromMSgaAZca(22:25:25) :

MizKay [stuck in] Red Carolina (19:06:04) :

One of the most annoying things about her appearances today is that she has yet another hairdo
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

How else will the Make Up Stylist earn her campaign pay?

24102008

Carol(Chicago,IL)(22:26:13) :

Yay, for voting! I voted Wednesday. It seemed prudent given all the record registration talk.

@Krystal-your posts are long-but, full of passion. Love your excitement.

24102008

Carol(Chicago,IL)(22:29:04) :

Time for start getting for bed-I have to be up for Car Talk tomorrow morning.
Thanks for making the world a better place, mudflatters

24102008

clairly(22:30:17) :

AKM – all I can say is “God Bless & Thanks!” –Would love to add to the Chi-town drive, all — I’ve got an Intercon. Amb night someone might be able to use……..

24102008

Shikago aka Chief Hussein Shikago(22:30:19) :

mamaorange (22:17:52) :

We will miss mudflats when this is all over!
———————————-
No missing! Mamaorange that is when Alaska is going to continue to need our support. These are the wonderful folks who are going to throw the bucket of water on her, they need us.

Then together we can watch her say; “You cursèd brat! Look what you’ve done! I’m melting! Melting! Oh, what a world, what a world! Who would’ve thought a good little girl like you could destroy my beautiful wickedness? I’m gone! I’m gone! I’m going!”

Then it’s off to FOX news.

24102008

Bec Hussein in Illinois(22:32:00) :

Carol – I know I’m going to like you. My sister loves Car Talk – but I never catch NPR at home so I am totally missing out. I just emailed Shikago – so he can hook us all up to finalize plans for Sunday, Nov. 2 in Chicago.

I need to head to bed, too!

24102008

Denise ThatOneFromMSgaAZca(22:32:05) :

Bec said:
We are planning to go see”W” tomorrow. Anyone else seen it yet?
++++++++++++++++++

My 17 year old insisted on going the first day. I am not going to tell you anything, afterall we all know the plot. Brolin is very good. But the actress playing Condi may have defined Rice like Fey has Palin.

Before I head to bed – I’m checking out those yellow boots I was going to buy a month ago and never did. I hope I could get them in time to wear to our Chicago Mudflats for Obama Meet-up at Millennium Park.

24102008

Aussie Puck Mule Hussein(22:37:29) :

In an interview with the U.S. Spanish-language network Univision aired Tuesday, Palin remarked that “through negotiations or sanctions, if necessary, we can pressure dictators like Hugo Chavez to make it clear that they cannot mess with the United States whenever they feel like it.”

Speaking at an event to inaugurate a thermoelectric plant, Chavez said he had heard of Palin’s remarks.

“The poor thing, you have to feel sorry for her,” he said with a dismissive wave of his hand. Palin, he said, is “a beauty queen that they’ve put in the role of a figurine.”

Chavez said one must do as Christ did: “Forgive her, for she knows not what she says.”

24102008

Shikago aka Chief Hussein Shikago(22:42:08) :

Bec, are you going to make that celebration rally 11/4 ???? I am going to be there. And I already have my knee high rubber boots, I use in my pond.

24102008

Hussein Canuck for Choice(22:43:08) :

Nice analogy about the jellybeans and good writing as always AKM! Her lies really grind my gears, but as a horror movie fan, I placate myself with horrible visions of her demise, the grislier the better (that’s just me).

Living in one of the tourism “Meccas” of Canada, I’m fortunate to meet people from all over the world. Yesterday I had the opportunity to speak with a black man from Trinidad, who said: “America’s not ready for a black president.” I explained that I put my hope and money (lots, b/c really it is ONLY MONEY, what’s money good for anyway, right?) in Barack Obama. He conceded that Barack will win, but he will be assassinated. He said this with certainty. Anyway, I mentioned Colin Powell and his national security dossier, to which my informed Trinididian acquaintance practically spat out: “Colin Powell’s not a strong man. He went along with Bush’s lie of WMD. Who, black or white, would respect such a weak flip flopper but an id’jit?” Some Caribbean food for thought. Just sayin’.

Yellow boots for everybody! How many of us might show up in yellow boots?-that’s a great pic.

Night Bec. Night Shikago.

24102008

Bec Hussein in Illinois(22:44:10) :

Shikago – both Carol and I are going to be homebodies on Election Night – with our computers and TVs. But you should definitely enjoy – and take pictures for Mudflats. It should be quite an amazing experience. If a little wild!

24102008

Aussie Puck Mule Hussein(22:45:00) :

Racism is rampant in Kansas City:

Overland Park store fires employee over racist slur on receipt

OVERLAND PARK – The owner of a suburban Kansas City shoe store says it has fired the employee who was behind a racial slur on a receipt given to a black customer.

The company that owns Journeys at the Oak Park Mall in Overland Park, Kan., apologized Wednesday for the worker who chose a code on a computerized list of reasons for returned merchandise that said “Cust: Dumb (N-word).”

A shopper had purchased a pair of shoes at Journeys but later returned them after buying a cheaper pair elsewhere. He got his money back but did not notice the slur on the receipt until he got home.

The Johnson County NAACP questioned whether the slur was programmed into computerized cash registers throughout the chain. Late Wednesday, Journeys owner Genesco Inc. said the references were entered by employees in the Overland Park store in a store-level customer database.”

24102008

Shikago aka Chief Hussein Shikago(22:50:01) :

@ Hussein Canuck for Choice your Trinididian acquaintance does not understand a few things about the country but luckily for us…
Colin Powell as was discussed in our msm is figured to be the Republican with the HIGHEST RESPECT rating among Republican’s in America today. he he he.

And I thank you for all you have done for Barack, thats awesome.

24102008

Shikago aka Chief Hussein Shikago(22:56:52) :

@Bec Hussein in Illinois OK got it, I am so easily confused. Write me at this addy, Carol & I have already traded real e-mail addys and soon we’ll firm up our get together. Plus if you are on here and I am not pass this addy to other area muddies. Thanks, I will talk to you soon. 4waryears@gmail.com

24102008

Bec Hussein in Illinois(22:59:04) :

Boots ordered from Target.

Catch you tomorrow. Or really – later today! Ha.

Aussies taking over for the night. They missed my discussion of Australian wine earlier tonight on the previous thread. We’ll have to continue that another day.

24102008

Shikago aka Chief Hussein Shikago(23:00:35) :

Good night everyone. Barack is on his way back now…

24102008

Bec Hussein in Illinois(23:01:00) :

Shikago – I did email you there a little while ago. We can catch up tomorrow.

24102008

Anonymous(23:04:25) :

@Shikago aka Chief Hussein Shikago (21:44:48) :

Oh bless you, you are a man after my own heart. Have an ancestor (okay, just two generations back) that was an ice cream make by profession. The stuff runs in our veins.

have been keeping up with reading everybodies posts but am not so good at keeping up and posting (I’m just not that fast). Just wanted to let you know I have two cases of Australian wine (Penfolds) down in my cellar (OK – closet but one can dream). It’s our favorite! Thanks for helping to keep us sane through all of this!

24102008

Northern Quilter AK(23:15:02) :

Oh, and I had a really good one at dinner the other night but can’t remember the name, only that the label on the bottle was upside down (clasic!)

24102008

Aussie Puck Mule Hussein(23:25:43) :

@Northern Quilter AK (23:10:11) :

I have two cases of Australian wine (Penfolds) down in my cellar

++++++++++

They’d be even better if you could drink ’em in Australia,😉

24102008

Martha Unalaska Yard SignToon(23:33:00) :

Denise ThatOneFromMSgaAZca:

(From a previous post) Oh my – I guess we are all getting a bit jumpy ! My sincere apology for being too stressed out after writing my letter to SP that I didn’t see the humor in your post. Meanwhile, black helicopters are circling my house…

Thank you – !! Please forgive my tension!

24102008

Hussein Canuck for Choice(23:38:10) :

Shikago aka Chief Hussein Shikago (22:50:01) :

@ Hussein Canuck for Choice your Trinididian acquaintance does not understand a few things about the country but luckily for us…
Colin Powell as was discussed in our msm is figured to be the Republican with the HIGHEST RESPECT rating among Republican’s in America today. he he he.

And I thank you for all you have done for Barack, thats awesome.

Hussein Shikago – By the “he he he” are you laughing at C. Powell being the the Repug w/ the highest respect rating? I can’t say yay or nay about Mr. Powell b/c I really have no clue about him. I was just quoting someone from Trinidad, those weren’t my words.

I will continue to donate to Barack, I’ve been told my $ has been going to FL and CO, sweet. Just for talking’s sake, some people have been giving me alot of grief for donating to the US election and not the Liberals (here in Canada). Well, everything that happens in the USA affects Canada, plus, I LOVE OBAMA. There it is, I said it. Enough said. Bye.

24102008

Pacificnwgal(23:42:58) :

On the surface, I thought that the Chicago Tribune article was a good start at Sarah actually talking about real issues such as disability issues. I ignored the part about the $150,000 spent on clothing. But, I am sure that tying these subjects together is another little switcheroo that is supposed to make us not look at the clothing issue and see her as this compassionate person who cares about disability issues. On top of that, she gives a press conference on what she is going to do about disabilities. One thing being “school choice.” Now, I am a teacher and a mother of a son with a disability. What on earth does that mean? I do not think Sarah even knows what she is talking about… again. Actions speak louder than words, and she wouldn’t be dragging around that little baby if she cared about his disability. She wouldn’t be cutting special education services and spending in Alaska. This is another pathetic gimmick by the McCain campaign to get some votes by pandering to THE MOST VULNERABLE PEOPLE IN AMERICA! Some of the young parents of children with disabilities may buy it, but when you spend a few years with the reality of living with a disabled person, you want real answers and real services, not just lip service, or should I say… LIPSTICK SERVICE. I think we could change this entire cliche now from “lip service” to “lipstick service” with sincere thanks to VP nominee Sarah Palin who truly epitomizes the phrase and it would stick.

24102008

knikgoose HUSSEIN!! justaskin(23:43:23) :

Palin believes the crowds see her as representing “hardworking, everyday American families.”???

I can’t insult even Repugs in thinking they could be that blind.

copybook realist :
Don’t be upset. Truth and knowledge is a good thing. And I’m glad you brought it up because Palin has been doing whatever she can get away with to get rid of indigenous lifestyle, and the environment for which Alaska is famous.
And, I don’t know if ppl know this, but, any church missionary can get a visa into the US, which is how I would imagine, Muthee got into the US. So, if the head church is in the US, and they have 150 or 500 new “missionaries” in Latin America or Africa or wherever who they need to infiltrate the Catholic church or the Native church, or the whatever churches in the US, they have no problem getting them into the country.
I know this because my friend in Fairbanks explained to me why most of the ‘missionaries’ that were at their church couldn’t speak any english. They were just learning. Convenient, no?

Oh for crying out loud…that Anonymous (23:04:25) : was me. I’m at the spouse’s computer, and it keeps getting it’s history cleared (by someone…) so it forgot it was me… Anyway, thank you, Shikago aka Chief Hussein Shikago, for eating ice cream in such impressive quantities!

24102008

Northern Quilter AK(23:50:11) :

Aussie Puck Mule Hussein

That would be to AWESOME – maybe oneday. My father in law visited about a year ago and is still talking about it!

time for bed here, don’t think I can make to the next post. night.

24102008

Aussie Puck Mule Hussein(23:53:05) :

Terrorist strikes on four American cities. Russia rolling into Eastern Europe. Israel hit by a nuclear bomb. Gay marriage in every state. The end of the Boy Scouts.

All are plausible scenarios if Democrat Barack Obama is elected president, according to a new addition to the campaign conversation called “Letter from 2012 in Obama’s America,” produced by the conservative Christian group Focus on the Family Action.

Although hard-edge attacks are common late in campaigns, the tenor of the strikes against Obama illustrate just how worried conservative Christian activists are about what should happen to their causes and influence if Democrats seize control of both Congress and the White House.

Will they go even crazier then?

24102008

Aussie Puck Mule Hussein(23:54:08) :

nite NQ

24102008

GJ sleepless in Idaho(23:56:34) :

I spent some time today thinking about just how far that $150k for her new clothes could have gone to really helping children with special needs. I’d love to see an itemized list of what $135K buys these days and how much of it was spent on the 1st dud and the children, especially the baby. I did see that she finally got the baby a carrier, and thankfully she isn’t parading him around, or at least there aren’t many pictures being taken of him. Unfortunately, that only makes we want to see him more, just to make sure he is being properly cared for while she does all her stump speeches. These are such important times in a little ones life, especially one with his particular special needs.

Scarha again today said she would for sure be looking out for children with special needs, yet she doesn’t seem to have a clue what that means, only that she will support allowing them to go to a school of their choice. Hey, as near as I can tell she hasn’t ever supported any schools for Special Needs children in AK. Correct me if I’m wrong, but doesn’t she support home schooling more than public schooling? She sure doesn’t seem to have any of her kids in school these days.

25102008

Jamie, Floridian in France(00:03:46) :

Good morning. Haven’t yet had time to start reading, but just wanted to share this

“President Bush’s unpopularity is the No. 1 problem for the Republican presidential ticket, vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin said in an interview airing Friday, breaking sharply with the president as the campaign enters its final days.”

– and the definition of the same by others than Palin herself:

“Palin, only the second woman to be nominated for vice president by a major party, has become a focus of unusually heavy attention for a No. 2 candidate, occasionally overshadowing McCain and leading some analysts to suggest that she has been a drag on the Republican ticket.

In the latest NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll, released Tuesday, 55 percent of respondents said they believed Palin was not qualified to serve as president if the need arose. Palin’s qualifications were the No. 1 concern voters had about McCain’s candidacy, ahead of the economy and the war in Iraq.

For the first time, more voters had a negative opinion of her than a positive one. In the survey, 47 percent viewed her negatively to 38 percent who saw her in a positive light, a striking shift since McCain chose her as his running mate in early September, when she held a 47 percent-to-27 percent positive rating.”

Well shoot, this confuses things. True, there’s all this right, left and center info about all of Palin’s screw-ups and her dropping ratings and whatnot coming down faster than you can keep up with, but here she HERSELF states so clearly that it’s Bush’s fault. Oh my. Whom to believe? Whom to believe??

Ya. Well, It’s not really a contest for anyone outside her own mind :o) Think she’ll ‘get it’ one of these days?

I was trying to go to sleep but couldn’t. Glad to have read your post. “Focus on the Family Action” could likely be charged with “promoting hatred” if that were in Canada. It is unreal how racism goes unchecked in the US and Australia – whereas in Canada it would be deemed a criminal offense “promoting hatred” – I am so proud to be a Canadian.

25102008

FilterSkateP(00:22:04) :

My tummy hurts from too many moose nuggets!

25102008

eajphd Molten Contra Palin(00:34:58) :

GJ sleepless in Idaho (23:56:34) :
“only that she will support allowing them to go to a school of their choice.”

The school choice has nothing to do with quality unfortunately. If you recall in McCain’s acceptance speech he said “Education is the civil rights issue of this century.” This is a point that his religious right audience understood quite clearly as rejecting public education. When he said “We need to shake up failed school bureaucracies with competition, empower parents with choice.” He was advancing a line of thought that goes back to James Coleman in the Nixon era when vouchers were conceived as a way of empowering the “Christian Academies” that were being set up to avoid school integration. Today the putative issue is “intelligent design” or “creation science.” The underlying aim is to complete the goal of getting a Bible based school system established at taxpayer expense. This is all part and parcel of the aims of the Republican base sugar coated in order to get the unwary to swallow it.

25102008

Hussein Canuck for Choice(00:37:20) :

WHAT IF: Democrats manage the White House and Congress?

(WHAT IF: Repugs slither back to the sewer they crawled out of?) < joke

WHAT IF: Dick Cheney and George Bush are posthumously impeached and called to trial?

WHAT IF: Iraq [the Halliburton (Dick Cheney) city state] war kills so many thousands of Americans, needlessly, and people say: ENOUGH

Just wondering.

25102008

GJ sleepless in Idaho(00:49:25) :

eajphd Molten Contra Palin (00:34:58) :
You got that just right. They seem to want to control, when life begins, when it ends, how we use our brains and our ovaries. But don’t want to call it government, just free enterprise.

Hussein Canuck for Choice (00:37:20):
That’s what’s got the Repub’s so worried. They see the writing on the wall and know what’s going to happen, when…not “what if” but when Obama is President.

25102008

Thisby(00:50:30) :

Love the moose! We have them in Wyoming too, but I think Sarah Palin’s moose droppings are on their way to eclipsing Dick Cheney’s moose droppings! And that is really some accomplishment.

Here in the American West, and by that I include Alaska and Hawaii, we expect a few things of our political avatars, regardless of party: honesty, integrity, ethical behavior, and a basic respect for those with whom you disagree, because you never know who will show up to rescue your cattle, rebuild your barn, haul your vehicle out of a ditch or flood or snowbank, or be there to teach your children.

In the American West, Democrat or Rupublican does not necessarily translate to Christ or Antichrist, as it seems to in the so-called Bible Belt. But, regardless of party, we expect our leadership to be honest with us and do their best for US, rather than for themselves. I think every Western state has had their share of congressional heroes and congressional SOBs, as well as gubernatorial heroes and SOBs. The problem is, sometimes it’s hard to distinguish between the two when they are in office.

Alaska is blessed in this regard. Alaska has the ability to see, in real time, the corruption of their Governor, and the ability to rise against it. Sarah Palin seems to me to be not only the avatar of Republican corruption, but the poster child for State government corruption. It’s happening in Alaska now, but it has happened in many other states and will continue to happen in other states.

As a Westerner, I feel a kinship to Alaska. But I have to ask — what in the hell are you thinking if you continue this woman’s reign?

25102008

farmhouselady(00:52:23) :

ok, that does it, you’ve GOT TO write a book. this about the moose nuggets has pushed me over the edge! i was still preoccupied with images of small, snarkey green trolls flying thru the cold, alaska night air, emitting little surprised cries as they go overhead and then splat into the muck. . . now it’s the colored little nuggets being excreted out the moose’s butt that keeps distracting my concentration from serious matters like bill paying.

i demand you write a book. you have such a gift for taking control of the reader’s attention, as effectively, i think, as the SNL crew and their skits. you both sorta do the same service for us, in different ways.

i wonder if you could at some later time when this SP stuff dies down, just compile your blogposts, or maybe with added commentary.. it wold HAVE TO be a best seller. there is no way you could lose, i swear. you gotta do it. you have a gift. i appreciate the enjoyment you are giving me for free here, but i’m feeling we’ve only scratched the surface. good witing, to me, is like fine wine, or precious jewels, or excellent food. you do use humor and imagery very effectively, but your “just plain” explanations are well crafted works of easy to digest clarity, as well. you just can’t keep this light under a bushel, long run. your public hungers for MORE!

i apologize for all this gushing. i’m just a person to whom the written word is the very staff of life.

@Krystal
I liked your commentary alot and I agree with you. I also want to say that the internet has made a REAL difference in this race. Nothing can be hidden anymore, all the sound bites are repeated and repeated, and all the blogs and videos are here to share and discuss. I know that having this media has made this a very different race. Like no other in history. But of course, this is going to be history. I can’t wait to read it twenty years from now and be able to say I was a part of it all. Goodnight all.

25102008

eajphd Molten Contra Palin(00:54:36) :

Aussie Puck Mule Hussein (23:53:05) :Will they go even crazier then?

The assertiveness of the Religious Right is a cyclic phenomenon in America history. It blossoms in periods of American isolation with a sense of puffed triumphalism. It fades whenever people are faced with a sense of crisis that undercuts the preaching that “we Americans are God’s chosen people”. It’s strange since you’d expect people to turn to religion in times of trial and stress, but the Religious Right has a different view of things. It’s purpose is to reaffirm their righteousness and invincibility “my God is bigger than your God”. When things get rough that sense gets undercut. So in answer to your question, they may get frantic with the loss of he election, but the economic crisis and the need to cope with the world with more humility will take the wind out of their sails as it has in the past.

25102008

Jamie, Floridian in France(01:51:38) :

@copybook realist (20:58:29) :
Digg this picture of Barack…love the jeans with a belt. I am thinking of showing it as an example to my students who insist on wearing their pants around their knees….how is that waddle walk sexy?

@AK Blogger (22:09:07) :
“What’s her sudden claim to be a champion to those with special needs????? Check the record – she’s been all promises and no action in Alaska”

_____

She was given this speech (in the guise of press conference) just before she went off to give her deposition in the Monegan thing. It was to throw attention in another direction “What a wonderful, caring person she is and she really wants to help those special needs kids!” So forget the deposition, forget the clothes, hair and make-up, she will be a great VP! Do they really think that we can be fooled now?

Unfortunately, the Repugs strategy is so transparent now – deflect attention, brush off as unimportant and petty all those questions asked by Dems and start attacking Dems or pretend to talk policy and make wacky promises that we will never keep.

And her stupidity keeps on rollin’.

25102008

Jamie, Floridian in France(02:12:46) :

Anybody out there at this time of day?

25102008

Aussie Puck Mule Hussein(02:21:37) :

Jamie, Floridian in France (01:51:38) :

how is that waddle walk sexy?

Jamie, it’s not supposed to be sexy, it’s supposed to be tough .

It comes out of jail, where you wear whatever duds are available, and not usually in your size because the most common sizes have all been issued to your contemporaries.

25102008

eajphd Molten Contra Palin(02:37:50) :

The baggy low slung clothes were originally a way of gang members concealing weapons. Then they became somewhat intimidating imply because they indicated the possibility of having a weapon and over time the whole thing took on a life of its own as part of hip hop gang banging culture.

25102008

eajphd Molten Contra Palin(02:38:58) :

imply should be simply

25102008

End the End Times(02:54:38) :

eajphd Molten Contra PalIn–With respect, isn’t there something additional that needs to be considered in terms of America’s fundie Christians/or any other fundies? Don’t they get hung up on dates, and doesn’t 2012 factor into some of this craziness? Aren’t they pretty well focused on themselves (not thinking about all of the other “chosen” people on the planet–meaning EVERYONE else)–and pretty much figure everything in the bible has to happen in a literal way, and simply must include themselves as the “good guys?” What’s worrisome is whether the whole AIP fringe thing is caught up in this. Add to that the end times “chosen” ones in the Middle East (individuals, every religion has potentially sane people in them), who want to force some kind of confrontation. And why are so many states in America talking about breaking away? Is it because we’ve been fed on a diet of religious (I don’t mean faith, I mean unthinking following of only literal interpretations) nuttery and media bread and circuses, and blessing ignorance, and not supporting science education? (Why doesn’t science get the attention/respect “hockey” does? ) This is so why we can’t have a Palin be a VPOTUS.

I heard the writer of the “left behind” series on the Fresh Air radio show. He said he reads the bible in a literal way. He forgets that Jesus walked among people who still didn’t know who he was. I think the test is how they treat people like Senator Obama.

Feelin’ Meowsy re the Brian Williams interview: S.P. tried to flirt her way out of having to answer to the press. Pathetic. The term clothes horse comes to mind. Now AKM has introduced the clothes moose. I imagine she got the idea that she always intended to give the clothes to charity from Princess Di. I’d much rather she go be Princess P. on Faux news. The little doodies will work much better there.

@Aussie – this quote was not mine. I simply commented on the cool photo. I agree anyway with the question – I am asking my 18-year-old son that all the time as he wears his jeans like that. I even showed him an article in the IHT that said some cities are making it illegal to wear your jeans that low and have your undies showing 12 inches above the waistband.

I still love Obama and Michelle’s style. I watched their interview for E-News or Style-tv or whatever asking about their style. They both found it extremely humorous – they hardly spend any money on clothing and have taught their daughters to understand what the cost of something means. And Michelle CAN look great in a $30 GAP dress or a $150 dollar dress like what she wore on the view. Clothes make the man? Compare Sarah/Cindy with Michelle!

25102008

Hussein Canuck for Choice(03:46:11) :

Why I am “so” Pro-Choice:

One afternoon some godbotherers began harassing me to the point that I called the police. The harassing idiots were charged with trespassing and mischief under the Criminal Code of Canada. Yes! I am proud to be a Canadian. Canada: where a woman’s reproductive capacity is only up to the woman herself; and married same sex partners enjoy the same rights and freedoms as heterosexual couples. I believe in equality and justice. You can call me a socialist or a baby killer and seriously I could care less if you trash talk me, because I am right and you are a moron. Get it? Got it? Good.

eajphd – don’t get me started (i volunteered at an an abortion/std clinic for a required number of “community service” hours (for smoking pot on school property) then became kind of a “condom” missionary, Being worried that ppl weren’t using them; going to lame raves, in order that I could place condoms everyfuckenwhere. If Repugs want to hate me for having been so vigilant in my former condom crusade, oh well I hate them too.

Can we all agree that the religious right will go on and on, we must ignore them, as though they are trolls.

Again, no one should have control over another person’s body because that is JUST WRONG. Just the idea of allowing anyone, some stranger, control over what happens to my body is just so freak’n bloody appalling – it’s beyond my comprehension that lots of women are ok w/ that – sickening. I will not concede to any argument opposing my pro-choice standpoint. In the meantime, I think I’ll have a couple abortions – JOKE.

Before I have the chance to meet Sarah Palin, I hope to have had at least 9 abortions. I would like to explain to her that I’m hoping for “double digits” by January, fingers crossed. I’d like to chat more, but I’m off to have an abortion BECAUSE YOU KNOW THEY’RE SO MUCH FUN, yay abortions!

25102008

eajphd Molten Contra Palin(04:15:38) :

End the End Times (02:54:38) :
2012 is picked up from the Mayan calendar. People who predict the end of the world keep readjusting the date based on whatever they can grab from any source. The desire of people in different states to break away typically traces back to the old Confederacy, where much of the ends theology originated. The mentality is still alive in regions where ex-Confederates settled. When you look at people like Rush Limbaugh and Newt Gingrich, and Trent Lott. you’ll find they just can’t accept the idea the South lost. McCain should get some sympathy points from them due to his slave holding Confederate army officer ancestor, but they see him as a failure because he doesn’t live up to the code of trying to re-establish the Confederacy. So SP, the self-proclaimed red neck who embraces their theology is preferable.

25102008

grumpy in Illinois(04:16:45) :

Sarah Palin loves to “spit into the wind”. Talking to the Chicago Tribune which endorsed Barack Obama…What is she thinking…or more likely not.

Her inane fruit fly comments, lack of knowledge..she is truly an embarrassment.
Keth Olbermann segment from last night about fruit fly, really great.

It looks like it’s about time for the U.S. Eastern Standard Time day shift to take over. But since it’s Saturday morning, will anyone be up yet?

25102008

Giulia Hussein That One Palin(04:22:06) :

Besides the idiocy of denigrating research on what is probably the single most useful research subject on genetics and neuroscience (Drosophila / fruit flies), no one is talking yet about her sweeping and idiotic proposal to change the special education law.

I’m all for fully funding IDEA (the law guaranteeing to children in need of special education a “free and appropriate public education.” (So is Barack Obama, btw.) Most of the problems and the contentiousness of the system stem from the fact that the schools simply do not have the money to provide even minimal needed services, and therefore that many schools feel forced to resort to shady means to keep parents from knowing and enforcing their kids’ rights.

But let’s talk about the notion of “giving parents the right to send their kids to any school they want to, public or private.” To do so would require a significant rewrite of IDEA, on several fronts.

First, under IDEA, all decisions, including the decision as to where to place a child, are made by consensus of a team, which includes both school officials and the child’s parents. I agree that these discussions can often be contentious and that the parents may often feel (or actually be) railroaded in some pretty awful ways, and that sometimes parents or schools need to go through the due process hearing system (ugh), and that the results may not always be fair (I am not going to apologize for the system)… but my point is that the law conceives of this process as one involving shared decision-making at all stages. Children are not captives — parents always have the right to place their child in any private school they wish — but if they want the taxpayers to fund their decision, it has to be made through the process.

Second, one of the driving concepts behind special education law has always been to reduce the “soft prison of low expectations” (that’s from the preamble to the law) that comes when children are placed long-term in specialized environments. (Think about what happens to people who are “institutionalized” long-term.) The law specifically prescribes that children must be placed in the “least restrictive environment,” which is to say the least separate and different and specialized environment, the one most like the one the other kids are in, that the kid can handle and derive educational benefit from. There are many levels of restrictive environment — in approximate order: regular classroom with push-in or pull-out assistance, regular classroom with full-time aide, separate classroom for part of the day, separate classroom for most or all of the day, separate specialized public school, private special education school, private residential special education school, private residential program). We don’t put kids in more restrictive environments unless we have to, both because of the cost involved, and because the feeling is that it is best for kids to be as much out in the regular world as they can be. That’s why the law is written that way.

Oh, and third, let’s talk about cost for a minute. I’ve worked at a therapeutic day school for emotionally disturbed kids. Great place. For the kids who needed to be there, it was absolutely what they needed. But it cost $65,000 plus daily transportation costs to send a single kid there, all funded by the kid’s home district (honest, no one was making a profit — this was really what it cost to have a staffing ratio and a state-mandated class size limit and to provide the services the kids needed). Kids were often transported from an hour’s drive away or more, typically with only one or two kids per bus. And don’t even get me started on how expensive a residential program is… we’re talking well upwards of $100k. To propose that all parents with kids with special needs could simply unilaterally decide to stick their school districts with bills of that size is ludicrous.

And fourth, let me make clear that out-of-district placements typically have to be into a school specifically approved by the state department of education for the purpose. These private special education schools are subject to an immense amount of regulation and oversight. The overwhelming majority of private schools do not and would not qualify.

Fifth, most folks fundamentally misunderstand the purpose of the law. Much as though I deplore this and wish the law were written differently, IDEA does not provide for kids to receive the “best” or “optimal” education, or for them to “achieve their full potential” or anything else like that. It provides for an “appropriate” education, enabling a kid to “derive educational benefit.” The common phrase is that kids are entitled to “a Chevy, not a Cadillac.” If the kid can make progress with some resource teacher instruction in the regular classroom, then even if they would make more progress in a specialized private school (which many of them would), the law does not require the district to provide the private school placement.

Recognize that Palin is conflating two very different issues here, and using the “school choice” as a dog-whistle to religious fundamentalists, who have been trying to get public funding for private religious schools (which are overwhelmingly Christian — I think the number is north of 95%) for basically forever. (By the way, note that many states’ homeschooling laws also allow parents or small groups of parents to set up “schools” that are basically homeschools, but would then be able to get taxpayer dollars… does this sound anything like the Sarah we know and love?) She’s trying to get Christian fundamentalists to believe that she’s going to give them taxpayers’ money to send their kids to Christian schools or to homeschool their kids. And if she could actually pull it off, do you think she would? You betcha.

25102008

SC Strike Chipper Hussein ProAmerican Palin(04:23:35) :

I love the Palin Talking Points Generator. I will have one (at least) before long.
It is not often that I laugh out loud before 7am in the morning, but that did the trick–as did several comments, this morning
NOT that bizarre story about Palin’s church, tho, that makes me queasy (at best)
@ Katiebgood
that is a hilarious story! I’m trying to imagine why MIL wanted to put pooping ducks on the holiday table to start with…she must be an interesting woman
@copyrealist
You apparently did freak out a lot of people, but you’re absolutely right that we are better off having this information than not
And I would be thrilled beyond measure if the model of a man who wears pants that fit, with a belt, would start a new trend away from the baggy/saggy/occasionally obscene spectacle we’ve been treated to for the last decade and more…a lot of the kids don’t even realize the “jailin'” aspect that Aussie Puck Mule mentions, it’s just become a habit that they think is cool

And I don’t kid myself about racism, but at this point I am of the belief that America IS ready for a GOOD president of any description!

25102008

RLS(04:30:22) :

Had a problem trying to follow the link posted earlier about Palin and the various religious/witch connections. I think the earlier link was cut off. Here is the link I used that seemed to work. I really is a long but interesting read.

“I think that those reporters asking those questions should come to some of our rallies and ask some of those in the crowd why it is they are enthused,” she said….

____

Can I just say that I think I read somewhere that the Secret Service or campaign aides were preventing reporters from leaving their designated reporting pens in an attempt to talk to those people at the rallies…..now, how can they talk to the people if they aren’t allowed into the crowd to talk to the people….

ooh, my head does hurt.

25102008

Nebraska Native AKA Froth Hussein Failin(05:22:19) :

@Krystal…. I liked your comments too! Is anybody here? I gave up on trying to do national time differences, let alone international time zones, in my head.

I think the republicans figure with all that horseshit being tossed around..there has to be pony in there somewhere…

25102008

Deuce2 AL/Axe Diesel Hussein(06:52:40) :

Aussie Puck Mule Hussein (22:45:00) :

Racism is rampant in Kansas City:
============================================
I found this today on MSN homepage. After reading it, I am so sad.
I hope our nation finally grows up.http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27365080

25102008

ttownlotta(07:31:09) :

Hey Mudflatters, hope all is going well. I’ve been thinking, maybe the new glasses has a ear piece in the back of them.

yellowdoggranny, I am still laughing about your comment.
“I think the republicans figure with all that horseshit being tossed around..there has to be pony in there somewhere…”

this. was. a. RIOT!!! Oh my GOD! I want one of those moosey things! where to buy?? Etsy? Now, don’t let Brian and Brenda see that. I mean, it could be a bit offensive and we really don’t want to do any due harm to an animal already on the run from such things as Sarah’s gun and misc. swing sets. but good golly, that little wooden thing would make a GREAT gift for those “Nasty Santa” gift exchanges! if you should wander upon my comment and have any ideas as to where someone down here in the prickly-pear part of the lower 48 could get one, boy howdy! I’d sure be grateful! big hugs to you, Mudflats! you’ve been the beacon of sunshine and fresh air during these smelly days of elephant shit…and it’s too bad…because I really do loves the elephants. can we start a petition to make them hand over their mascott? get something a bit more appropriate for their party/platform/ideology? like…say…a baracuda???😉 i kid, i kid…

big mwah!

ps: serious on the wooden Brian beany thing…

PSS: I’m only RESUBMITTING this comment because my computer glitched on THIS end so if it shows up TWICE, my apologies!

25102008

WV Democrat(07:47:51) :

@ RLS (04:30:22) :

Had a problem trying to follow the link posted earlier about Palin and the various religious/witch connections. I think the earlier link was cut off. Here is the link I used that seemed to work. I really is a long but interesting read.

I’m am so sick of WHACKOS using God for their own purpose. I’m not even sure God exists. No one is and don’t tell me that’s what the word “faith” is for. No one I know has ever seen God nor spoken to him and I’m not about to believe ANY of the various charlatans that ask for your minds as well as your donations. I do not believe that witches are evil. I have a lovely Wiccan friend whose beliefs — if I understand them correctly — honor Mother Nature.

Religious groups such as the one in this story use God to control other people and teach that their God is bigger than anyone else’s God. What ignorant fools. Even the modern Christian bible (and any other religious holy book) were all written by man. Not God or Allah or whomever just some crackpot. So many wars fought over religion, so many lives lost over my God is better than your God. What utter crap!

Sarah Palin is an ignorant fool.

25102008

Deejay(08:12:11) :

My elitists, how about that Sarah Palin, huh, huh!

25102008

shoeho(08:35:43) :

WV Democrat—Wow, did you say a mouthful. I agree 100%.

We had a “break” in our family (mostly made up of “traditional” Protestants) when my BIL and wife became “born again.” They used every family gathering to try and convert others.

DH and I (free thinkers) got to the point where we just couldn’t take the fights anymore. We now have very little to do with his brother. It’s a shame, but sometimes you have to take a stand on some of this stuff.

I agree, SP is way out there on the ragged age where religion becomes something else.

25102008

shoeho(08:38:03) :

AZ Mom–You ask, we deliever! I just googled wooden moose candy dispenser. There are other sites as well.

This is just wonderfully written, to perfectly demonstrate the stage of ridiculousness that politics has now reached.

I’m feeling kind of queasy too…

25102008

knikgoose HUSSEIN!! justaskin(09:35:35) :

Giulia Hussein That One Palin:
Excellent post!
As a home-schooler, (but not a fundie) I often thought it would be wonderful if I could use the tax $$$ allotted to my ‘not attending’ kids for their home edu., but, it didn’t stop me, (I had 1 special needs and everybody -all 3- were ADHD).
Yes, I did give the system a whack at them for the first few years, and then, when it seemed like they were being shoved through the cracks, I pulled them out. (Mainly because a friend at the board accessed my files and found that tests, and tests results had all been faked…fairly common when they don’t want to affix extra teaching costs to special needs)
I wonder if Palin has realized that she has also opened the door for taxpayer – supported Muslim, Jewish, Hindu, Lutheran, Episcopalian, messianic Judaists,…etc.. or will she try to limit it to only fundies?

[…] The Palin Talking Point Generator. Posted on October 25, 2008 by gregornot The Palin Talking Point Generator. […]

25102008

katiebegood(10:46:38) :

Carol(Chicago,IL) (21:00:33) :
copybook realist-
I’ve actually been surprised that there hasn’t been more discussion on the religion topic. It’s a major part of what makes up her entire worldview.

It’s not just the religion issue, there is also the AIP connection. The right wing nut jobs like to say that the MSM is in the bag for Obama, because they don’t ignore all the outrageous things that come out of the McCain camp. But that’s so much bull. If the MSM was in the bag for Obama they would be running Palin’s religious/pastor issue 24×7 the way they did with Wright. And they would be running her and Todd’s association with AIP 24×7. Can you imagine if the MSM found out that Michele Obama had ties to an organization that hates the United States and wants to secede from the union? They would go ape and we would never hear the end of it.

25102008

Giulia Hussein That One Palin(14:25:42) :

knikgoose HUSSEIN!! justaskin writes:

I doubt they much care. Given that the overwhelming majority of religiously-based private schools and the even more overwhelming majority of students being educated in religiously-based private schools (typically larger total student populations) are some form of Christian, I think that it matters little to them if a few other religions get a few crumbs along the way. They have a lot more work to before they can implement the more overtly Taliban structures.

The point is that if they can get government money for their, um, madrasas, that’s money in their pockets, and more opportunity to attract more students to be educated in their schools (because of subsidized/free tuition), that’s all good for them.

(By the way, if there were a voucher program for regular education, students in the really ritzy independent schools would just see a tuition hike to cover it. There’s no earthly way a voucher program would cover the college-like tuitions at those schools.)

25102008

msbeader(14:26:04) :

Back a long time ago (1954-55) I lived in North Pole. That was when the houses were about a half mile apart. During the winter I listened to the radio as my only connection to the world (no car). There was a program, “From Out of the North” that I’d tune in. I’d like to get a recording of some of those broadcasts if they were ever gathered. Anyone know if it’s out there???

25102008

villagethinking(15:59:16) :

I have a plastic reindeer that dispenses Jelly Bellies. I used to put it on my desk during the holidays, stocked with brown beans. They make a whole bunch of different animals, and I think you can buy them online, as well as at Spencer’s. They are called Poop Pals.

[…] The Palin Talking Point Generator. At the Alaska State Fair, and other craft shows around town, I’ve seen a little device that makes me smile and […] […]

25102008

End the End Times(17:29:03) :

katiebegood, Yes! It sounds like you’re really getting the S.P. threat. I don’t have much time to write here. Have been reading these interesting threads & now have to go get more done. Tons of good things to read here. Hope to comment more later. Everyone try and read today’s Andrew Sullivan. Great stuff on there too. All kinds of prayers (“religions” or no)/ good thoughts/vibes going to Obama..from the whole world..who are ALL “chosen.”

25102008

Jerome Shipanik(19:22:34) :

where can I purchase this moose, would be great Christmas presents…

25102008

futurexpat?(19:54:45) :

I have one of these from one of my friends in Alaska. She was moving and had to get rid of things, so I offered her some money for it. I always got the biggest kick out of it when we were up there vacationing. I love it. I bring it out every Christmas, but it’s in our travel room the rest of the year. I may look at it a little differently this year! I love all things moose from all our trips up there, but this has always been one of my favorites!

25102008

staceywrites(21:40:43) :

You make politics look like child’s play. I love it! Very informative in content, with entertaining prose!

“I think that those reporters asking those questions should come to some of our rallies and ask some of those in the crowd why it is they are enthused,” she said, adding that the crowds see her as representing “hardworking, everyday American families.”

She’s going Rogue? But you shouldn’t multiclass like that in the 4th edition! WHAT IS SHE THINKING. :O

27102008

BJD(08:08:33) :

I personally believe that quite a few of the folks turning out for the Palin rallies are just curious, and that’s it. Heck, I’m and Independent voting for Obama, but I would probably still go to a Palin rally just out of my own curiousity….and probably just for a good a laugh!

And I’m a single, full-time working Mom of a child with Down syndrome who was ALSO raised in an Assemblies of God church, but I truly believe this woman is ABSOLUTELY NOT WHAT WE NEED — EITHER NOW OR EVER!

And if she were to indeed run in 2012 or later, I WOULD NOT BE VOTING FOR HER.